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Green councillor's expulsion could lead to Brighton council shake-up

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Warren Morgan wrote:
A lot to pick up on here. Firstly working with the Tories. We haven't and won't do any deals with them (or the Greens), we didn't over the Budget and we won't seek any coalition with them - we have very different views about how local government runs.

Having said that we will take each issue and situation as it comes and try and find the best solutions for the city, and we will talk to other councillors in trying to do that .

Whilst we are party politicians we are also residents ourselves and represent all of the people, regardless of who they vote for - if anyone. Of course as these pages show, there are huge differences in opinion so no-one is going to be able to please all of the people all of the time. The same would go for a council of individual independents or groups of independents (like resident association cllrs elsewhere).

As far as &quot;what would you do" then there are three points of reference on that. Firstly our manifesto from last year, secondly the material that is up on our website www.brightonhovelabo

ur.com, and thirdly there is the consultation we will be undertaking with our members, residents and others (for example voluntary sector organisations) over the coming 18 months/2 years on our next manifesto. Personally I am looking at co-operative council ideas such as those being tried by Lambeth. Like in government though, a policy that might be workable now may not fit the situation in three years time, so we are not going to set things in stone too early. That might sound evasive, but if a week is a long time in politics then you have to be able to adapt to fit the circumstances.

Firstly Warren, thank you for coming on and saying your piece, very few politicians do-although given the alarming percentage of rogue posts on here, and the laughing stock this board has become, perhaps it's not surprising.

I always said that last year was a good election to lose. Whatever the Green Party attempts to do it is damned, and it seems that given this tabloids thinly veiled hostility towards them, the party is even taking the blame for things that councillors aren't even responsible for.

The East Brighton by election is going to be a good barometer. Yes, Labour could field a tortoise and it would win, but it will be interesting to see how the population views the game locally."

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It comes after the an internal party inquiry into her decision to vote against supporting same-sex marriage in a town hall debate earlier this year.

It means the political makeup of the local authority is currently 22 Greens, 18 Conservatives, 12 Labour, one independent and one vacant post.

Opposition councillors are now seeking to see if the decision, which sees Coun Summers become an independent councillor, will mean the Greens lose their casting vote on four of the seven main
council committees.

It could even affect the powerful Policy and Resources Committee.

Conservative group leader Geoffrey Theobald said: “Rather than wasting all their time on internal squabbling, the Greens should be getting on
with running this city."

Labour group leader Gill Mitchell said: “We are very concerned about the conduct of the Green Administration.

“As a responsible opposition we felt that it was right to give them the opportunity to run the council but a series of events has now proved that they are not capable.”

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Coun Mitchell added: "Our sole aim is to protect services for city residents from the Government’s cuts programme and the Green Party’s misguided priorities that spend extra on their own pet Green
projects while cutting the very basic services relied on by the majority.

"If there are councillors who prefer this more sensible approach then they should work with us."

The inquiry was established when 15 members of the Green group, which is not whipped meaning councillors can freely vote on any issues, wrote to the local party asking for it to look into Coun
Summers’ actions.

It ruled her decision to speak and vote against equal marriage did not “constitute sufficient grounds” for disciplinary action against her.

However, the panel’s results, which have been seen by The Argus, claim the decision was taken on the grounds of her wider behaviour, which included her taking part in public anti-abortion vigils
outside Wistons clinic in Dyke Road, Brighton.

A spokesman confirmed a letter signed by a majority of the Green councillors will be handed to the council’s chief executive today enacting Coun Summers’ removal.

Speaking on behalf of the Brighton & Hove Green Party, executive member Rob Shepherd said: "A majority of Green Councillors confirmed the removal of Councillor Summers from the Green Group of
Councillors and so from today she will sit as an independent councillor, though she will remain a member of Brighton and Hove Green Party.

"This follows last week’s presentation of a report by the Inquiry Panel convened for the purpose.

"Coun Summers will have a right to appeal through the party’s processes but we do not yet know whether she will take up that right, nor do we know whether she will wish to remain an independent
councillor. That is up to her.”

The decision to expel her from the Green group does not affect her membership of the Green party.

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